tvCompass
tvCompass was a Chicago-based software company, founded in 1998, that built mobile internet device software to enhance TV-viewing experiences. It raised $5.1M in Series 2 funding in 2006; its domain is currently for sale, indicating the business is no longer active.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What tvCompass does
tvCompass was a Chicago-based software and services company founded in 1998 that built solutions for mobile internet devices aimed at enhancing consumers' TV-viewing experience. The firm operated in the early mobile/connected-TV companion-software category, serving end consumers rather than enterprises, and historically maintained a headcount in the 11–50 range. Its only documented capital event in the input data is a Series 2 funding round of $5.1 million closed on 2006-04-25, led by Jackson Boulevard Capital Management.
The company's underlying product, technology stack, pricing model, customer list, and management team are not disclosed in any available source material; the only verifiable first-party artifact is the firm's domain, tvCompass.com. That domain is presently listed for sale on the HugeDomains marketplace at $9,095 (or a 24-month payment plan of $378.96/month at 0% interest), and the listing page contains no information about an active operating company, employees, products, or revenue. No product roadmap, integrations, AI/ML capabilities, partnerships, certifications, or strategic initiatives are documented in the input.
Taken together, the available evidence is consistent with a defunct or dormant entity: a legacy firmographics profile from a past era, a single mid-2000s funding round, and a brand domain that has lapsed into resale. Any forward-looking investment thesis on tvCompass as an operating business would require primary-source confirmation that the entity remains active, which the supplied data does not support.
tvCompass firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- tvCompass
- Website
- https://tvcompass.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- tvCompass was a Chicago-based software company, founded in 1998, that built mobile internet device software to enhance TV-viewing experiences. It raised $5.1M in Series 2 funding in 2006; its domain is currently for sale, indicating the business is no longer active.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
tvCompass industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mobile TV Applications
- NAICS
- Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (5162)
- SIC
- Cable & Other Pay Television Services (4841)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Pay-TV Value-Added Services (DVR, VOD, TV Everywhere, Apps) (MPABAGAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Smart Entertainment & Media Devices (Connected TVs, Streaming, Multiroom Audio) (HSAPAQAI), Partner Integrations & Distribution (App Stores, Channels, OEM/Carrier Bundles) (MPAHAJAO)
Keywords
Where tvCompass is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
tvCompass business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Monthly | Domain purchase — single payment |
tvCompass product offering
Product offeringCore offering
tvCompass develops software and services for mobile internet devices that enhance the TV-viewing experience for its customers. The company was founded in 1998 and operates from Chicago, providing mobile-device based applications focused on television content consumption.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mobile TV-viewing Software and Services
Companies that use tvCompass
Customer profileIdeal customer profiles1 record
tvCompass technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
tvCompass partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves1 record
tvCompass competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Gracenote: Gracenote (owned by Nielsen) supplies the TV/movie metadata, imagery, and content identifiers that underpin EPGs, second-screen apps, and streaming catalogs — the same data substrate tvCompass would have needed to deliver mobile TV enhancement experiences.
- IMDb (Amazon): IMDb provides comprehensive TV/movie metadata, episode guides, cast information, and mobile apps that enhance the TV-viewing experience — overlapping significantly with the discovery and metadata layer tvCompass would have delivered to its customers.
- Rovi Corporation (now Xperi): Rovi built the foundational EPG and TV metadata infrastructure that powered TV guides and program discovery across Pay-TV operators and consumer devices — directly adjacent to tvCompass's stated mission of software/services enhancing the TV-viewing experience on secondary devices.
- Pluto TV: Pluto TV operates a free, ad-supported streaming service with a built-in linear-style EPG and multi-device viewing — a modern incarnation of the Pay-TV value-added viewing experience tvCompass originally aimed to enhance on mobile devices.
- Tubi: Tubi is a free ad-supported streaming service offering TV and movie content across mobile, web, and CTV devices, competing for the same mobile TV-viewing audience that tvCompass once targeted with enhancement software.
- TiVo: TiVo combined DVR hardware, EPG, and TV-viewing-enhancement software (program guides, recommendations, remote scheduling) and is now part of Xperi, making it a broad incumbent competing in the same TV-viewing experience category tvCompass originally targeted.
Direct peers
- Plex: Plex offers a unified media-streaming and personal-content-management platform with TV-focused viewing surfaces, watchlists, and metadata — a modern, consumer-direct analogue to tvCompass's mobile-device-centric TV enhancement software.
- Tablo: Tablo provides OTA DVR hardware plus companion mobile/web apps that schedule, stream, and enhance live broadcast TV viewing on mobile devices — a direct functional analogue to tvCompass's software-for-mobile-internet-devices model.
- Channels: Channels is a whole-home DVR platform whose mobile and Apple TV apps deliver a streamlined TV-viewing experience with metadata-rich guides, paralleling the consumer-facing TV enhancement value proposition tvCompass originally sold.
- TV Time (formerly TVShowTime): TV Time is a mobile-first TV-show tracking, discovery, and second-screen companion app that directly mirrors the use case tvCompass pursued: enhancing the TV-viewing experience on mobile internet devices with metadata, episode guides, and social context.
Market position
Strengths3 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat2 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights4 records
Customer concentration
tvCompass financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
tvCompass leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
tvCompass funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
tvCompass M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about tvCompass
What does tvCompass do?
tvCompass develops software and services for mobile internet devices that enhance the TV-viewing experience for its customers. The company was founded in 1998 and operates from Chicago, providing mobile-device based applications focused on television content consumption.
When was tvCompass founded?
tvCompass was founded in 1998. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is tvCompass based?
tvCompass is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
Who are tvCompass's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Gracenote, IMDb (Amazon), Rovi Corporation (now Xperi), Pluto TV, Tubi and TiVo. Direct peers are Plex, Tablo, Channels and TV Time (formerly TVShowTime).
Does tvCompass have an API?
No public API is recorded for tvCompass.
What industry is tvCompass in?
tvCompass's product category is Mobile TV Applications. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPABAGAG, Pay-TV Value-Added Services (DVR, VOD, TV Everywhere, Apps), with a secondary code of HSAPAQAI, Smart Entertainment & Media Devices (Connected TVs, Streaming, Multiroom Audio). Its NAICS code is 5162 and its SIC code is 4841.